Just in case you missed it. The one camera you see on top has just been announced by Panasonic. They think devices like that are the present and future of wearable camera devices. And just like the GH4 it records 4K (obviously not with the same video quality).
Here is a video that shows you what you can do with that camera. Cool…but will it sell?
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Nice concept.. Terrible image stabilization. My Sony HDR-AS15 looks so much more smoother and seems to have better dynamic range then this wearable panny. I really want panny to succeed with this because I like this 2 part design more but the implementation has to rock from the previous version before they move to 4k.
Design is nice but seriously, what’s the point of 4k when the extra pixels contain no information. You’re just reducing the amount of footage you can take without any gain as lower res footage from the same camera will look the same or even better when you upscale to 4k in post.
By associating this kind of shitty IQ with 4k, the industry isn’t doing itself a favor.
Exactly, if the lens is not able to resolve such detail or if the bit rate is too low, the 4K amounts to a marketing gimmick.
the future is not multiple devices connected to each other but a single small device.
I have the predecessor to this, the A100. Kids and I love it, for skiing, and they use it on their bikes. Certainly adding a screen will improve it….4K? Whatever, as long as you can choose a lower res. It took us a while to think to use it for non “action” footage, but it’s great for videos of crazy cats…
The wifi app for iPhone works better than I anticipated it would, certainly more useful than the Olympus App for my E-M1.
Want mount camera on horsetail! Horse ate GoPro.
I love my GoPros, my Black Edition is also capable of 4k, but 720p and 1080p is more than enough for me. What I didn’t get though is the advantage of that Panasonic design, compared to a tiny compact GoPro.
The camera piece is about the size of a lipstick, much smaller than a GoPro. The rest of it tucks into a shirt pocket, or on an armband. You can also control it all from a smartphone, even from a distance. I mounted it to a whippet’s collar for a race, worked great!
I am not convinced yet, but will check it out once I see it in the shops. How about mounts for the Panasonic? My GoPros are mostly on the suction cup, holding tight at 200km/h, the GoPole telescope stick and on the helmet when mountain-biking and the 150g are not really disturbing on my head. I agree my old GoPro 2 with additional battery was not as comfortable.
For skiing, it clips into a swiveling holder that slides onto your goggle strap. The same holder can be used with velco strips, or on the armband that holds the contol part. As well as the handsfree plastic thingy that fits over the ears.
As a skiier, I’m quite interested by this. The GoPros look utterly ridiculous in my personal opinion. And the ‘walkman’ box makes sense for those of us who want to adjust recording settings easily.
As good as this might well be though, it will surely be superceded at some point in the very near future by an all-in-one ski goggle solution (aka google glass), that records video in addition to giving augmented reality type data on speed, altitude, piste routes.etc.
So, you have one? For how long?
What’s it like to use? How’s the video quality?
I’m assuming the lens is fixed, right?
I must say, I like the tethered lens much better than the headlamp styled GoPro. It seems more flexible (pun not intended, honest) and utilitarian in many respects.
Jeff, I’ve had mine since last July, used it for 2 months in NZ skiing, and sporadically since then.
It’s OK to use, I guess. A bit fiddly getting the iPhone app sorted, had to buy the “multi-mount” to mount on ski goggles strap. It really needs to be used with an iPhone, otherwise you can’t adjust settings and check alignment etc. IS only works in some frame rates/ resolutions! But once it’s aligned on your helmet you can just use the control box.
IQ is fine, but I’m not a video guru! No complaints on the footage I’ve worked on.
The lens is not fixed, there are two angles of view: 160º, 107º, (104º with IS on).
I really like the size of the camera unit, you forget it’s there on your helmet. Going on a Dhow cruise tomoro (we live in Doha), will have the kids wearing it when they do bombs into the sea!
That sounds cool. I’m not a big a video shooter, but I’d probably use something like that for biking around NYC… thru traffic and parks, over the many bridges, along the Hudson River, mountain biking in Upstate New York, etc..
I jerry rigged a small ball head for my handlebars, but there’s something about putting one of my M4/3 cameras on it and riding around the city… surrounded by morons in cars… that made me hesitate. 🙂
“Cool…but will it sell?” …yes, porn producers are already waiting in line 🙂
Only if it’s splashproof. 😉
It is 🙂
It doesn’t help that youtube is killing the panasonic flavour of 4k.
If I’m remembering correctly, there was an early Minolta digital camera, DiMage?, where the lens was mounted on a short cable. It was a cool concept, but that was it. This sort of reminds me of that. If the optics could be improved, it might be an okay thing.
Waiting for Olympus do-it-yourself home examination scope.
Good, just the extreme wide angle look is truly horrid. There should be another lens option.
Here’s what you can do with that camera. You can do a colonoscopy on a big guy.
Seriously, it’s not April 1 yet.
Also, is “Panasonics” in any way related to Panasonic?
GoPro Hero3+ is more tiny, don’t need a wire with the wi-fi remote, and is already 4k 15fps, 2.5K 30fps with a raw-like cinestyle. This panasonic concept is too large and wire remote is not pratical in the action. Better to wait the next Gopro which will be 4K 25-30fps at least with a decent bitrate…
Admin, could you add the model number to the headline? Thanx
They have the HX-A100 for half that…but the screen on the A500 would be a valued addition.
I’m sure Olympus could make some pretty sweet cameras like this… given their medical camera background 😀
I like it, except for the fisheye.
Need much better stabilisation, anything less than OLY 5-axis one gets dissy watching the footage.